


Rebel with a Heart of Gold

by BunnyFair



Series: Todd's Flower [1]
Category: DCU (Comics)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-25
Updated: 2019-07-10
Packaged: 2020-01-31 14:47:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18593446
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BunnyFair/pseuds/BunnyFair





	1. Chapter 1

Jason whistled a tune as he walked into the Wayne building and glanced around, making his way towards the chemical labs. He smiled politely at the secretaries walking around and swiped his totally-not-stolen keycard, holding the door open for a red-haired woman walking swiftly towards the doors. He tilted his head and glanced down at her as she brushed past him, faintly catching a whiff of flowers.

He lightly smirked and continued on, walking to the lab. He continued whistling a tune and slid the door open, looking around. He perked up at seeing the lab empty and strolled in, glancing around.

He blinked at the whiteboard covered with differently colored formulas and crossed his arms, his fingers tapping on his arm as he examined them. He tilted his head and frowned, grabbing the green marker. Glancing over the rest, he erased part of it before correcting it.

He glanced over the rest of it and nodded to himself before turning to the large case of chemicals. Whistling a tune, he tugged a paperclip out of his pocket and knelt down, grabbing the lock. He hummed softly and started working the lock, carefully wiggling the paperclip into the slot to start unlocking it.

He lightly bit his lip as he worked and grinned as it popped open, lightly fist-bumping the air. He grinned and tugged the lock off, opening the door. He softly hummed and looked over the bottles, glancing over their labels.

"Who the hell are you? And what the hell are you doing?"

He jolted and quickly turned, staring at the red-haired woman. "Uh, I can explain."

She crossed her arms and narrowed her bright green eyes. "Explain fast before I hit this little button and have security on your ass."

Jason bumped the case close and scratched the back of his head. "I'm Jason and I, uh, need some chemicals for some personal use."

She stepped towards him and pointed her finger at him, almost booping his nose. Up close, he could smell her flower perfume even better. "That's not an answer."

He held up his hands and nodded. "Alright, alright, you busted me. I got a buddy dealing with some drug withdrawal and I know the chemical compound to help him out."

She eyed him closely and nodded, stepping back. "Fine, why not get the drug you need, ya know, legally?"

He scratched his head and shrugged. "It doesn't help him as much as the therapist thinks, so I fix him up something better that does help."

She nodded and looked over the whiteboard, squinting at the corrected formula. She softly huffed and muttered, "That's where I messed it up."

He nodded and said, "You're smart, though, and very cute if I do say so myself."

She raised an eyebrow and glanced at him. "Excuse me?"

He lightly smirked and rested his arm against the case. "You're very attractive, what's your name cutie?"

She gave him a bland look and rolled her eyes. "You're as smooth as butter, Todd."

He blinked and his arm slid down, making him stumble before he quickly straightened up. "Wait, I didn't give you my last name."

She lightly smirked and patted his arm. "Don't hurt yourself there, everyone knows all of Mr. Wayne's kids. Jason Todd, age twenty-six, about six foot, around two hundred pounds, white bangs with black hair, and the prettiest blue-green eyes. Oh, and he's fond of burgers from Bat Burger. Did I get everything right?"

He crossed his arms and sputtered for a moment, softly huffing. "Jeez, you're observant. Know my social security number too?"

She waved her hand, focusing on the whiteboard. "That'd be ridiculous. Get your chemicals for your friend, I'll overlook it this time."

He nodded and opened the case, grabbing the bottles he needed. He glanced over at her and smiled slightly, pocketing the bottles. "I never did catch your name, doll."

She glanced at him. "Seraphina Isley, don't call me doll again."

He nodded and started walking out, gripping the door when it clicked. He quickly turneed back and asked, "Wait! Isley as in Pamela Isley? You're related to her?!"

She narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms. "I suggest you leave, Todd. I am not my mother and she is becoming a better person."

He shifted and stepped back, closing the door. There was no reason to blame her for her mothers' previous actions. Sins of the father and all that. He took a deep breath and started walking. He'd have to do more research on her later, Bruce wouldn't mind if he 'borrowed' some employee files.


	2. Chapter 2

Jason bounced his foot as he read over the file and muttered softly, biting his lip. He softly grumbled and flipped the page, looking over the awkward smile in her picture. He chuckled softly and smiled, reaching over to sip his beer.

He set it back down and looked up at the soft patter of feet. Setting the file aside, Lian climbed into his lap. He smiled and tucked her close, wrapping her blanket around her better. "What's wrong, munchkin?"

She yawned and curled up in his lap, rubbing her eye. "Woke up, can't sleep. What are you doing up?"

He glanced at the file and shrugged. "Just doing some research. Let's get you some water and I'll lay down with you."

She nodded and loosely curled her fingers in his shirt. "Okay, Uncle Jay. When can daddy come home?

He looped his arms under her and stood up, walking to the kitchen. "He'll come home when he's feeling better, Little Arrow."

She nodded and yawned widely, clinging to him as he fixed her a glass of water. He nudged the straw to her and leaned against the counter, yawning himself. He rested his head against the cabinets and closed his eyes, quickly jolting when she pressed the cool glass against his neck giggling.

He rolled his eyes and took the glass, setting it in the sink before walking to the bedroom. "Gonna get you back for that later, Little Arrow."

She giggled softly and yawned widely, curling up when he laid down. "G'night, Uncle Jay."

He kissed the top of her head and relaxed. "Sweet dreams."

Jay held her close as she crashed and listened to her soft snore, tugging the heavy blanket over them. He closed his eyes and the file returned in his minds' eye. Bright green eyes, vivid red curly hair, and pale skin.

Seraphina Isley, biological daughter to Pamela Isley, five foot nine, twenty three, and sharper than his knives. He lightly smirked, drop dead gorgeous too, he thought before yawning widely. He settled on his side and tucked the cocooned-Lian close, dozing off into a heavy sleep.  
~~~~

Jason got up the next day, bright and early. He made perfect waffles and bacon for himself and Lian, got them both ready for the day, and (her favorite part) took her to school on his motorcycle. He waved until she walked inside and took off, heading towards the Wayne building.

He beelined towards the lab and grunted when Bruce stepped out, files in hand. Jay stuffed his hands in his pockets and casually asked, "What gotcha got there, Brucie?"

Bruce didn't even glance up from the file and continued reading it. "A chemical for plants that improves photosynthesis regardless of time of day without compromising their health. How are you, Jason? I hear Roy's doing better."

Jay shrugged. "He's doing alright, Kori's taking care of him while I got Lian. So, uh, you got a new scientist?"

Bruce nodded and lightly smirked, glancing up. "She's very focused on her work and works hard so I gave her a personal lab. She's single as well, if you must know."

Jay sputtered for a moment and his cheeks darkened as he crossed his arms, shuffling his feet. "Well good for her. Anyway, I gotta go, peace out."

Bruce chuckled softly as Jay stalked down the hall and called, "Third door on the left."

Jay casually flipped him off and wandered down the hall, nudging open the door. He blinked at the notes scattered around and peeked over the table of plants, seeing Seraphina sitting cross-legged on the floor writing notes with different colored pens surrounding her.

He blinked and leaned over further, smiling at the intricate braid holding her hair back. He brushed against a plant and yelped when a vine looped around his wrist, thorns pressing into his skin. She jolted and looked up, quickly standing up.

She grabbed his hand and softly muttered, looking over the thorns. Jay softly hissed as they pressed in deeper and said, "Hey! That really hurts ya know!"

She rolled her eyes and grabbed a spray bottle, spraying the thorny vine around his wrist. "You should be more careful around plants."

He softly huffed and wiggled his fingers as the thorns folded back, the vine returning to curl around a ruler. "What is that thing anyway?"

She looked over the vine and nodded firmly, relaxing slightly. "It's an automatic defense mechanism I'm working on. It's still too touchy."

He carefully walked over to the sink to hold his wrist over it. "Yeah, I can tell. You got any bandages?"

She paused in writing on a clipboard and shuffled around in a drawer, throwing a roll at his head. He caught it and wrapped up his wrist, biting his lip. He wiggled and flexed his fingers, looking at a few notes taped to the cabinets.

He tilted his head and asked, "You do pharmaceuticals too?"

She glanced up and nodded, tucking a loose piece of hair behind her ear. "Yeah, in theory. I keep getting some of the chemicals wrong though so I can't have them properly tested."

He crossed his arms and glanced at the time. Yeah, he had a few hours. "I can help. I got time to kill."

She raised an eyebrow, pushing up her glasses. "Really? Well, you did fix that last formula... Fine, you can help."

He grinned and snagged a few papers. "Well, first thing first, let's get your thoughts in order."

She softly sighed and picked up a green pen, focusing on her clipboard. At least he was cute.. and had a nice ass, she realized as he bent over to pick up papers. She bit her lip and felt a rose form in her hair, quickly pulling it out to hide it in her lab coat pocket.


	3. Chapter 3

Jay lounged on the lab floor and flipped through some notes. He hummed along to the soft music playing and listened as Seraphina tended to her plants. They had made quite a bit of progress together surprisingly and had grown a bit close if Jay had to comment.

Speaking of which, he sat up and scratched the back of his head. "Hey, uh, you got any plans later?"

She blinked and looked up from her flowering plant. "What is it?"

He set his notebook down and waved his hand. "Ya know, are you free tonight? Like, around six?"

She shifted and glanced down, gently rubbing a leaf. "Um, yes, I'm free. What's going on tonight?"

He shrugged and rolled his shoulders, grunting when his shoulders popped. "There's a musical going on, Little Shop of Horrors. It's about a florist that raises a plant that feeds on human flesh. It's actually pretty funny."

She shrugged and sprayed some water onto a plant. "I've heard of it, but never seen it. I assume it'll be at the theater?"

He nodded and smiled widely. "Yeah, I don't have to watch Lian tonight, so I can come pick you up. Where do you live?"

She glanced down and turned pink. "I'll, uh, meet you at the theater. Five-thirty work with you?"

He nodded, closing his notebook. "Perfect, I'll be at the front waiting with tickets in hand. I'll be back in a few, bathroom break."

She waved her hand and flushed as he stepped out, ducking her head as a rose sprouted from her hair. Jay darted to the elevator and smacked the top floor button, bouncing on his heels as it quickly rose. Thank god Bruce had fast elevators.

He swiftly walked by the secretary and shoved open Bruce's office doors. "I need two tickets to tonights Little Shop of Horrors play at six!"

Bruce leaned back in his seat and laced his fingers together, raising an eyebrow. "Oh, really? And, what do I gain out of it?"

Jay pressed his hands into the wooden desk and leaned over. "I'm taking Sera on a date, she doesn't go out much and a social life is important to a healthy mental health. Better mental health means better work and science stuff to do."

Bruce chuckled softly and nodded. "Alright, fine, fine. No need to ramble on any longer. I'll have two tickets waiting for you at the door."

Jay nodded and pointed. "Nothing too fancy, no balcony seats."

Bruce waved his hand, typing on his phone. "No balcony seats, I promise."

Jay nodded and turned on his heel, walking out. Tonight would be great. And he'd get to bust out that old suit of his. Hopefully it still fit.  
~~~

The suit did not fit, but he did find a nice black button up shirt and some nice pants. And, Bruce lied. He did give them balcony seats. No fancy wine or snacks, but still balcony seats. However, they could see almost everything in the theater and had the best view for the play itself.

Jay sipped some water out of the bottle he bought and smiled slightly, leaning back as Sera laughed. She wore her hair half-up with a beautiful red rose in her hair and an absolutely gorgeous dark green dress with black leaf designs scattered across it. The loose necklace she wore was lightly bedazzled with gems scattered along the gold chain.

He rested his cheek in his hand and grinned when she squeaked amongst her laughter. She quickly covered her mouth with her hands and flushed, glancing at him. He simply grinned at her and offered some water.

She rolled her eyes and took it, sipping some. "Pretend that didn't happen."

He chuckled and held up his hands. "Alright, but it was very cute."

She shook her head and handed him the bottle back. "It is not cute."

He hummed and tilted his head. "You're right it's downright adorable."

She flushed and shook her head, relaxing back as the scene calmed down. "Whatever you say, Jay."

He chuckled softly and patted her hand. "It's true. You look beautiful, by the way. Have I told you that?"

She giggled softly and nodded. "Your jaw dropped when I stepped out the cab and then you informed me multiple times that I was 'gorgeous, stunning, beautiful' among other compliments."

He grinned and rested his hand on top of hers. "Well, it's true. I also love your flower. It almost blends in with your hair completely."

She turned pink and smiled slightly, brushing a loose strand on hair behind her hair. "Thanks. You look very handsome yourself tonight."

He smiled and leaned back. "Thanks. We should do this again."

She smiled slightly and loosely laced her fingers with his. "We should. Maybe I should pick next time?"

He nodded and held onto her hand. "Agreed."

She nodded and relaxed back, focusing back on the play. He grinned widely and held onto her hand as she never pulled away. She lightly bit her lip to keep from smiling too hard and glanced over, seeing his wide grin. Yeah, he was definitely a dork but a cute dork.


	4. Chapter 4

Roy smiled as Lian chattered in his ear about school and unlocked the door to Jason's apartment, walking in as she hopped off his back to land firmly on the hardwood floor. Roy flipped on the light and Lian skipped in, looking around. "Uncle Jay! Are you home?!"

He smiled and followed her as she looked around; usually Jason was already up and would be lounging on the couch if not out and about. Lian nudged the bedroom door open and peeked in, padding over to turn on the bedside lamp. Roy snickered softly at the drool on the pillow and Lian poked Jason's cheek.

Jason twitched and grumbled softly, muttering something like, "Shoo, Lion," as he vaguely waved his hand at her.

Lian grinned widely and 'roared' loudly, jumping on him to bite his shoulder. Jason yelped in surprise and hot up, Roy catching Lian as she rolled off the bed squealing. Jason looked around in a mix of confusion and irritation. 

He rolled his eyes at the giggling girl and pulled his hand from under his pillow, yawning widely. "Whatdya want?"

Roy set Lian on the bed and smiled. "I was wondering if you could - 

Jason scrambled off the bed, darting to the bathroom. "I got a date soon! Shit! Shit! Shit!"

Roy blinked and Lian snickered softly, swinging her feet. Jason rapidly brushed his teeth and waved his hand at her, pulling some pants from his dresser. Lian giggled happily and hopped off the bed, skipping out the room. Roy leaned back against the headboard and smiled as Jason quickly got ready, combing his hair into place.

"Seraphina?"

Jason rinsed out his mouth and grabbed his brown leather jacket, checking the hidden holsters. "Gonna meet her mom today. Gotta look presentable, ya know? Make a good impression, not piss off any plants, don't drink any suspicious water, the usual parent meeting."

Roy snickered softly and stood up, patting Jason's shoulder. "It'll be fine, Ivy's been on a good streak. Heard she's been starting some of those public gardens around the city to feed people and no man-eating plants involved at all."

Jason gave him a dirty look and tugged on his boots, ruffling Lian's hair. "Sorry, munchkin, no babysitting today."

She giggled and nodded. "Daddy and Kori just wanna have adult time."

Roy flushed and crossed his arms as Jason raised an eyebrow at him, locking the door. "Really now, Roy?"

Roy gave Lian a look and mouthed, 'traitor', before saying, "Someone's too observant for her own good."

Jason snickered and slung his arm around Roy's shoulders as they piled into the elevator. "How about you ask Dick and Alice to watch her?"

Roy scrunched up his nose. "Last time that happened, Lian kept climbing everything."

Jason hummed and tilted his head. "How about Damian and his little girlfriend? Could go to the arcade."

Lian bounced at that and nodded rapidly. "Grandpa Alfred can watch us! Pleeeeaaaaasseeeeee Daddy!"

Roy dug his elbow into Jason's side and softly sighed. "Alright, fine. You win."

Lian cheered and Jason smiled, heading off to the garage to slide on his motorcycle, waving as Roy opened the door to his car. Jason waited for them to pull out into the street and headed off, glancing at his watch. He was gonna be pushing it.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jason cleared his throat as he stood in front of the outside door of the apartment and straightened out his hair, his tuft of white bangs falling on his forehead. He softly huffed and checked the time before ringing the bell to the numbered apartment. He took a deep breath and lightly bounced on his heels.

Everything would go fine, he reassured himself. Seraphina really liked him and he liked her and they got along, it would all go great. She had promised him that Ivy would behave too and didn't want to ruin her good streak.

He took a deep breath at footsteps on the stairs and stepped back as the door swung open, Seraphina smiling at him. "Heya."

She smiled and waved him in. "Hiya, come on in. Momma's waiting for you. I got everyone out the house so it's just us."

He nodded and followed her up. "Alright, sounds good. I hope I didn't keep you waiting any."

She shook her head and opened the door to their apartment. "Not at all. Try not to step on any plants if you can."

He nodded and glanced around the apartment before stepping onto the clear spots between vines on the floor. Seraphina walked to the kitchen and called, "Momma's in the garden but she'll be down in a minute. Want some water?"

He carefully made it to the couch and sat down. "Sure, thanks."

He leaned back into the cushions and frowned at something jabbing his back, shifting to tug it out. He raised an eyebrow at the very chewed-up squeaky toy and set it on the floor by his feet. She had never mentioned having any pets.

Seraphina stepped out and handed him a glass of water, sitting beside him. "That would be Bud and Lou's victim. They're Harley's hyenas."

He stiffened and glanced around. "Hyenas?"

She snickered softly and patted his hand. "Don't worry, they're away for now. Plus, they're trained and I don't mean in just attacking trained."

He nodded slightly and leaned back, sipping his water. "That's good. So, how have you been?"

She smiled and tucked her feet up. "Good, been gardening with Momma and working on a few things."

He smiled slightly and gently squeezed her hand. "What are you two working on?"

She squeezed back and rested her head back. "Extending the lifespans of some fruits and vegetables, like squash, cucumber, tomatoes, potatoes, things like that. Also doing some other pharmaceutical things, like finding natural medicine that don't interfere with regular medicine."

He nodded and relaxed into the cushions. "That sounds neat. Plant-based medicine does have it's uses."

She smiled. "It really does and not everybody can take or afford most regular medicines. By using plants, it'll be more cost-effective and shouldn't cause as many poor reactions."

He nodded and looked up when the balcony doors opened, Ivy lowering herself on a vine onto the balcony. He blinked in surprise at her and shifted, focusing on his water. He was so used to seeing her in a more skimpy outfit, the plain jeans and apron over a tank top looked so... jarring.

Sera smiled and waved slightly as Ivy hooked her apron on a vine. "Jay's here. Momma, this is Jason."

Ivy nodded and walked over, lightly smirking when Jason quickly stood up to offer his hand. She slipped her hand in his, shaking it. "Nice to meet you, Jason. Sera has told me quite a few things about you."

He nodded and sat down as she sat in the large chair, crossing her legs. "I hope it was all good."

She hummed and tilted her head, a small smirk playing on her lips. "It depends on how you define 'good'."

Seraphina rolled her eyes, resting her cheek in her hand. "It was all good, I promise."

Jason nodded and shifted as Ivy kept her eyes on him. "I hear you've been working on plant-based medicine, that's cool."

Ivy nodded and leaned back, her fingers lacing together on top of her knee. "Thank you. I'm sure my little flower has already told you more specifics."

He nodded. "She did, and she mentioned increasing the longevity of fruits and vegetables. There's a community garden nearby isn't there?"

Ivy smiled. "Why, yes, there is. I believe it's named after Damian Wayne, as rumors say that he wanted to provide those in need with nutrients that meat cannot. Seraphina helps the garden in her free time, but Bruce has her spending quite a bit of time at work. Or, she's on dates with you."

He nodded and sipped some water, biting back a gulp. "I hope that's not a problem."

Seraphina rolled her eyes and Ivy smiled wider. "Oh, no, it's the opposite of a problem. Harleen and I rarely get alone time together and having all of the girls out is a relief. Even then, my little flower doesn't get out often until you met her that is. Now, tell me, what do you do for work?"

He shifted and smoothly said, "I do odd jobs here and there, sometimes I do some things for Bruce and he's a generous boss."

Ivy hummed and nodded slowly. "Of course he is. Sera, could you fix me a glass of water?"

Seraphina gave her a look and stood up. "Sure, momma."

Ivy smiled and stared at him until Seraphina slipped into the kitchen, the swinging door closing behind her. Jason shifted and stiffened when a vine wrapped itself around his neck, his fingers curling to reach for the knife in his sleeve. A swift vine caught his hand and wove around his fingers, keeping them open.

Ivy stood up and walked over, leaning over until her nose almost brushed his, her eyes narrowed. She softly said, "If you get my daughter harmed in any way, you will not be found. I do not care about your vigilante work, but you leave her out of it. She is not to be blamed for my past and if something happens to her under your watch, well, she is quite fond of you but you will not be found even by her."

He nodded slightly, keeping his eyes on hers. "I promise, no harm will come to her and I will keep my vigilante business out of her life. If anything happens to her on my watch, I will make sure to fix whatever I can and if not, I will atone."

She nodded and waved her hand, the vines curling away and back to the potted plant to curl around the base like snakes. "Good."

He curled and uncurled his fingers a few times as she turned, sitting back in her chair. Seraphina wandered out and handed a glass of water to Ivy. "Harley didn't do dishes before she left, I had to wash out a glass."

Ivy sighed and drank some water. "Of course not. She left in such a rush, I knew she was avoiding the dishes. Thank you, darling."

Seraphina nodded and sat down, tucking her feet under her. She glanced up at Jason and raised an eyebrow. He met her eyes and smiled, gently squeezing her hand. She hummed softly and squeezed back.

Ivy glanced between them and leaned back. "So, I hear you have a.. niece, is that correct?"

Jason straightened up and nodded. "Technically, she's a goddaughter but she calls me her uncle, so niece works too."

She nodded. "Cute. Seraphina told me you're quite smart, too. You corrected an equation she was having trouble with, if I remember right?"

He sipped his water. "Yeah, she was just too stressed to stop and think. It was an easy mistake, too."

She chuckled softly. "Seraphina does get stressed easily and, as Harleen puts it, very frazzled."

Seraphina turned pink and rolled her eyes, a small flower blooming in her hair. "Gee, thanks, momma."

Ivy smiled wider and Jason tilted his head, looking over the flower. "Where did that come from, Sera?"

Seraphina flushed and gave Ivy a look as more flowers bloomed in her hair. Ivy chuckled and stated, "She is biologically my daughter, so she has inherited some of my.. genetic abnormalities. One of those abnormalities is that her hair sprouts flowers whenever she is embarrassed."

Seraphina sunk down into the cushion and Jason snickered softly. "That's alright, my hair's weird too. See, my bangs are all white. I get plenty of odd looks from it, at least your flowers almost completely hide in your hair."

Seraphina nodded slightly and smiled slightly, combing her fingers through her hair to shake out the flowers. "Yeah. Makes you look interesting though."

He grinned, hugging her shoulders. "Thanks, Damian calls me a skunk though whenever he gets in a mood."

She shrugged and tugged out the rest of the flowers. Ivy smiled and said, "That's right, you're one of Bruce's sons."

He shrugged. "I don't think the adoption papers were ever finalized but he treats me like a son anyway. I'm pretty removed, though."

Ivy hummed softly and nodded. "He's a good man, means well for others. Rumor on the streets have it that he's taking a closer look at the staff at the asylum for anyone that's too suspicious of being risky to the patients."

He nodded. "It's true, gonna be a lot of firings if that file I saw is the one related to Arkham."

She nodded and smiled slightly. "That's good, some of those people working there are truly awful."

He glanced down. "Yeah, they are."

Seraphina glanced between them and shifted slightly. "Do you want to see the greenhouse, Jay? We can take the stairs up."

He nodded and stood up. "Sure, sounds like a plan. If that's okay with you, Pamela."

Ivy blinked in surprise and nodded slightly. "Of course it is. I need to get back to the lab and continue working anyway before Harleen gets home."

He smiled slightly and set his glass on the coffee table, following Seraphina to the stairs to the roof. She loosely held his hand and smiled at him. "Momma likes you."

He squeezed back, smiling at her. "Glad to hear it. Don't have to worry about if my plants are gonna beat me up in my sleep or not anymore."

She snickered and shook her head. "That'd be ridiculous, momma can't control plants that far away without a power boost."

He chuckled and looked at the large greenhouse, which easily encompassed at least half of the roof. He whistled softly and followed her inside, heat and humidity practically smacking him in the face. He looked around and spotted Ivy pulling on her apron, walking through a door to a lab.

The greenhouse had rows of long planters, each one holding a variety of different plants. Instead of being typically clean-cut and trimmed, the plants were allowed to grow freely with seemingly minimal human interference. Vines clung to the top of the greenhouse and various plants grew along poles and makeshift arches.

He wandered in and looked over an arch of grapes. "Huh, I didn't think they grew easily up here."

Seraphina smiled, walking beside him. "They do prefer a warmer climate, but we're trying to make them more viable to grow in cooler weather. You can eat them if you want, they're very sweet."

He smiled and gently tugged a fat one off, popping it in his mouth. He blinked and his eyes widened. "Wow, that's sweet. Lian would love these."

She nodded. "I'll get you a box to bring her some."

He smiled and squeezed her hand. "Thanks, really."

She squeezed back and smiled up at him. "You're welcome. Thanks for coming to meet momma, she really does appreciate that you took the time to come here and meet her."

He kissed her cheek. "It's only proper. Alfred did make sure I had proper manner in case I ever did go out on dates. Plus, I really do like you."

She smiled. "I really like you too."

He smiled widely and lightly kissed her, loosely wrapping his arm around her waist. She hummed softly and leaned into him, loosely gripping the front of his shirt. He tightened his grip and suddenly yelped, pulling away from her and rubbing the back of his hand.

She sighed and a vine snuck back into place. "Momma!"

Ivy yelled back, "No kissing in the greenhouse! Go out if you want to do all that!"

Jason blinked and grinned. "So, wanna go out?"


End file.
